11th Circ. Won't Pause Medicaid Rule Amid Fla. Hospital Audit

By David Minsky

An Eleventh Circuit panel revived Florida's lawsuit against a federal rule that reduces Medicaid funding based on agreements between hospitals, but upheld a lower court's decision to deny the state's request for an injunction after finding it wouldn't likely succeed on the merits of its complaint. 

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Trump SPAC's Ex-CEO Seeks $50K Daily Sanctions In Fee Row

By Katryna Perera

A former CEO of Donald Trump-tied blank check company Digital World Acquisition Corp. has urged the Delaware Chancery Court to impose a $50,000-per-day sanction against the company for allegedly "throwing a tantrum" and refusing to pay roughly $2 million of a $2.9 million and growing legal fee advancement order in connection with litigation in Florida.

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7-Eleven To Pay $4.5M Penalty Over Fla. Gas Station Buy

By Rae Ann Varona

7-Eleven Inc. and its Japanese parent company will pay a historic $4.5 million penalty to settle the Federal Trade Commission's allegations that the convenience store giant bought a Florida gas station without first informing the FTC, in violation of a 2018 agreement, the agency announced Monday.

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Carlton Fields Steps Aside In 'Irreconcilable' Miss America Case

By Emily Johnson

A Florida federal judge allowed Carlton Fields and its attorneys on Monday to withdraw from representing the plaintiffs in a dispute over the ownership of the Miss America pageant, after the firm said "irreconcilable differences" drew it to ask to step down.

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One Sotheby's Agent Tells Jurors $3.7M Theft Was Not Fraud

By Carolina Bolado

A former One Sotheby's International Realty agent accused of stealing $3.7 million in proceeds from the sale of a Miami-area beachfront luxury condo told jurors Monday that while there may have been wrongdoing on his part, there was no fraud.

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Trump To Let Nvidia Sell H200 Chips To China For 25% Cut

By Rae Ann Varona

The U.S. will allow Nvidia to export its H200 chip to certain customers in China in exchange for the U.S. getting a 25% cut from sales, President Donald Trump announced Monday.

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11th Circ. Vacates Benefits Ruling In Black Lung Case

By David Minsky

The Eleventh Circuit on Monday vacated a ruling that awarded survivors benefits to the widow of a railroad engineer who died after yearslong exposure to coal dust, finding the U.S. Department of Labor review board wrongly determined that a preparation plant was part of an underground coal mine. 

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Mosaic Says 'Radioactive' Road Done, Legal Challenge Moot

By Elaine Briseño

A Florida fertilizer producer asked the Eleventh Circuit to toss a lawsuit challenging a new roadway on its property using radioactive materials, arguing the court cannot provide any remediation or relief for a road it already constructed.

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NBA's Rozier Denies Guilt As Feds Eye Gambling Plea Talks

By Pete Brush

Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier on Monday denied charges that he conspired with five other men to defraud betting companies by agreeing to exit a game so that gamblers could win bets on his performance, as Brooklyn federal prosecutors floated plea negotiations.

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Royal Caribbean Negligent In Passenger Death, Family Says

By Carolina Bolado

Royal Caribbean crewmembers negligently overserved a man alcohol and later used excessive force to restrain him, the family of the man who died on board one of the company's cruise ships told a Florida federal court.

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Insurer Can't Shake Fintech Co.'s Data Breach Coverage Suit

By Hope Patti

An insurer can't escape a financial technology company's suit seeking coverage for losses stemming from a 2024 data breach caused by its former CEO, a Florida federal court ruled, finding that the company adequately pled a claim for breach of contract.

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Opinion

Horizontal Stare Decisis Should Not Be Casually Discarded

Eliminating the so-called law of the circuit doctrine — as recently proposed by a Fifth Circuit judge, echoing Justice Neil Gorsuch’s concurrence in Loper Bright — would undermine public confidence in the judiciary’s independence and create costly uncertainty for litigants, says Lawrence Bluestone at Genova Burns.

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Series

The Law Firm Merger Diaries: Getting The Message Across

Communications and brand strategy during a law firm merger represent a crucial thread that runs through every stage of a combination and should include clear messaging, leverage modern marketing tools and embrace the chance to evolve, says Ashley Horne at Womble Bond.

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Bonus Spotlight

MoFo, Kellogg Hansen Exceed Prevailing BigLaw Bonus Scale

By Anna Sanders

Morrison Foerster LLP and boutique law firm Kellogg Hansen Todd Figel & Frederick PLLC both recently unveiled above-market bonuses, according to a MoFo in-house memo and a media report. 

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Analysis

Hagens Berman's Novel DOJ Referral May Have Chilling Effect

By Emma Cueto

A Pennsylvania federal judge's unusual decision to refer prominent plaintiffs firm Hagens Berman LLP to the U.S. Department of Justice for possible criminal investigation over its pursuit of claims related to morning sickness drug thalidomide could have a chilling effect on lawyers' advocacy, law professors and attorneys said.

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Trustee Says Winston & Strawn Is Liable For $1.7B Fintech Bust

By Lynn LaRowe

The trustee of the bankrupt self-styled "anti-woke" financial technology startup GloriFi said Winston & Strawn LLP shouldn't be allowed to escape a malpractice lawsuit over the company's $1.7 billion failure, saying the firm was a knowing participant in the allegedly unlawful activities of its then-CEO.

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Consulting Co. Says Law Firms' Malpractice Cost It $10M

By Rachel Konieczny

A Colorado consulting company told a state court that an Am Law 200 firm and a now-dissolved law firm committed legal malpractice that cost the company $10 million in a lending transaction. 

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Uber May Win Sanctions On Atty Who Disclosed MDL Docs

By Bonnie Eslinger and Mike Curley

A California federal judge said Tuesday it appeared an attorney for plaintiffs claiming Uber failed to protect passengers from sexual assault "acted in a cavalier manner" with a protective order in the multidistrict litigation, but didn't rule on Uber's requests for monetary sanctions nor its bid to kick the attorney off the plaintiff steering committee.

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Brief

Democrats Push For $1.76B To Fix Defender Budget Shortfall

By Courtney Bublé

Almost 50 Democratic lawmakers are urging congressional appropriators to fix the long-standing budget shortfall for federal defenders in the upcoming full-year budget.

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DOJ Says It Could Indict Comey Again

By Jared Foretek

The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday said it may once again seek charges against ex-FBI Director James Comey, asking a D.C. federal judge to dissolve a temporary restraining order that bars prosecutors from using evidence seized from Comey's former attorney.

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Analysis

FERC's Fate Uncertain As Humphrey's Executor Teeters

By Keith Goldberg

The future of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission may hinge on whether the U.S. Supreme Court will remake its 90-year-old precedent that protects members of independent agencies from being fired at will by the president.

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Senate Confirms 3 Judges For La., Miss.

By Courtney Bublé

The U.S. Senate confirmed three judicial nominees Tuesday for federal courts in Louisiana and Mississippi.

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